Navigation

Read to your Preschooler

Preschoolers are almost ready to read – and the opportunities to read are everywhere! Children this age can sit for longer stories and begin to retell the story to you. They can also recognize and maybe even write their own name as well as recognizing many letters of the alphabet, signs and labels.

Here’s what we know:

Between the ages of three and six a preschooler’s vocabulary can grow from 2000 to 13,000 words.

Children who love books will become better readers.

Help your preschooler:

Read and re-read your child’s favorite books, while also introducing her to new favorites. Longer books, funny books, rhyming books are favorites as well as books about going to school and making friends.

Follow the words in books with your finger, so that your child can “see” the rhythm of the words, as well as hear them.

Let your child choose what books he wants to read and let him retell the story to you in his own words.

Read books that use predictable words or repetitive language.

Continue to make connections between letters, the sounds they make and the words that begin with those letters – and introduce rhymes. For example – “J is for Jake – your name! Can you think of a word that rhymes with Jake? How about rake? What sound does the word rake start with? Rrrrr.. – right!”